Philippines president Duterte hurls abuses at EU

Manila, Sep 21 (IANS) Philippines’ president Rodrigo Duterte hurled profanities at the European Union, for its criticism of Duterte’s violent anti-drug war campaign, media reports said on Wednesday.

“I read the condemnation of the European Union against me. I will tell them f..k you,” he said in an address to government officials Tuesday in the southern city of Davao, according to Philippine Daily Inquirer.

He also raised his middle finger during the speech.

Duterte’s latest outburst follows a resolution by the European Parliament on September 15 that expressed concern about the campaign that has killed at least 3,500 people in the country since he took office on June 30.

In the resolution, the European Parliament urged Philippines to put “an end to the current wave of extrajudicial executions and killings” and “adopt specific, comprehensive policies and programs”.

The EU condemnation, according to Duterte, stemmed from a sense of guilt for the crimes committed by European countries.

“Who did I kill? 1,700 here? You call that genocide? How many have they killed?” a local daily Philstar Global quoted Duterte as saying.

Duterte also said France and Britain are extending support to the United States in conducting attacks against countries in the Middle East, which have also led to a high number of casualties.

When the US had criticized his aggressive war on drugs, Duterte had called it a “hypocrite” country, referring to the massacre committed by the US in South Philippines at the beginning of the 20th century.

Duterte is known for making offensive remarks. Recently, he called U.S. President Barack Obama a “son of a wh***” which led to the cancellation of a scheduled Asean Summit meeting of the two in Laos on September 5.